


Forbidden Fruit

by magician



Category: The Sentinel
Genre: Backstory, Bingo, Challenge Response, Gen, Kid Fic, Sentinel Bingo Card
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-05
Updated: 2018-02-05
Packaged: 2019-03-13 17:27:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13575432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magician/pseuds/magician
Summary: Blair has an adventure that's no fun at all





	Forbidden Fruit

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2018 SenBingo challenge for the prompt ::drum roll:: "forbidden fruit"

"Double dog dare ya!"  
  
And there it was; Blair couldn't walk away from a double dog dare.  Oh, he wanted to, but with fifteen kids looking on he had to take it.  
  
He and his mom had only been in town a month; it was September and Blair was starting a new school year. He'd attended a fair few schools in his young life and this one was better than others.   There'd been no overt bullying; in fact, he'd been pretty well accepted by everyone in and out of the classroom.  But dare was a common playground game in all the schools he'd been in.  
  
The dare he faced was climbing an apple tree and picking an apple--just one--to prove he'd done it.  The problem was it was in Mrs. Danbush's yard.  Blair didn't know Mrs. Danbush; her house was a good mile from where he and Naomi were living.  But he'd seen it as he walked with classmates to a nearby park.   They'd told him stories about Mrs. Danbush.  
  
That she had crazy cats that would scratch your eyes out if they caught you in their yard.  
  
That she never gave out candy at Halloween.  
  
That she put a curse on the apples so if you ate one you would be poisoned, like Snow White and her evil stepmother.  
  
Blair suspected that the stories weren't true; that probably the worst thing was that she didn't give out Halloween candy.  Still… it was a double dog dare.    
  
Part of the dare was that he had to do it alone.  In one way, that was good.  They wouldn't see if he screwed up.  In another way, it would mean he would be alone--no one to support him or cheer him on.  So now he stood in front of Mrs. Danbush's yard, neatly trimmed grass surrounded by a pristine picket fence.  And in the middle of it was the magnificent tree.  It was huge and had wonderful sturdy branches--perfect for climbing.  And it was loaded with lovely apples--golden with a blush of pink--just begging to be picked.  
  
He'd watched from down the street until he saw her get in her car--probably to run errands. This was his chance to get in and out undetected.  He went through the gate and stood next to the tree, walking around it to assess the best way to climb.  Once he scoped out the knobs and knotholes, he started his ascent.    
  
In mere minutes he was sitting on one of the lower branches.  Surrounded by the apples, the smell was intoxicating.  He smiled; if this were his tree, he'd put a tree house up here.  When his friends would visit, they could just reach out one of the windows and pick an apple to eat.  They would munch on apples all autumn and talk about important things, like what they'd wear for Halloween and which basketball teams would make the playoffs.    
  
Suddenly, he heard a car door slam.  With a start, he realized that he'd been day-dreaming and Mrs. Danbush must have returned.  He didn't panic; it would still take her time to get in the house and the tree was in her back yard.  So, he reached out and picked the apple closest to him--a huge beauty that filled his entire hand; bigger than a baseball.  Then he started to climb down.  
  
All of a sudden, there was a yowl.  A cat, apparently resting hidden in a higher branch, noticed Blair in her territory and objected.  Startled, and hampered by his need to hold onto the apple, Blair lost his grip and fell to the ground.  He felt a sharp pain in his arm and another as his head connected to the ground.  The last thing he heard before slipping into unconsciousness was a woman screaming.  
  
He woke up in an unfamiliar living room, lying on an unfamiliar couch.  As he moved to sit up, his arm fell weird.  When he looked at it, he was surprised to find it was in a white cast.  It was laying on a pillow embroidered with roses.  Just as he was trying to figure out how things had become so strange, a familiar voice called to him.  "Sweetie, how are you feeling?"    
  
Blair sighed in relief at Naomi's voice.  No matter what, things wouldn't be too bad if she was around. She sat on the edge of the sofa and reached over to feel his forehead, then looked all over his body, taking in the lesser scrapes, then focusing on the cast.  She nodded in satisfaction; obviously he passed muster. "How are you feeling, sweetie?  Are you in any pain?"  
  
Blair shook his head.  
  
She stood up and put her hands on her hips. "Then tell me what in god's name you doing climbing a tree, without permission, when no one was around to watch and make sure you were okay? What were you thinking? And taking an apple?  You know, apples aren't all that expensive, young man. We could have gone to the store to get some if you had such a craving, although I've never known you to like apples particularly so why you would want to risk your life for an apple is beyond me. Are you out of your mind? What possessed you?"  
  
Blair just stared at his mother, not sure which question to answer first.  She'd never asked so much or talked so fast to him before and he was a little dazed by it.  Fortunately, he was saved by someone else entering the room.  To his horror, it was Mrs. Danbush.  She was carrying a tray, which she put down on a side table.  
  
"Naomi, goodness.  The boy just woke up.  Give him a chance to get oriented." She moved to stand over him, clear blue eyes behind wire-rimmed glasses looked full of concern. "Are you all right, dear? Other than the broken arm, of course."  
  
Blair nodded, not quite sure what to say.  His throat was dry, both from disuse and fear.  What would she do to him?  Did she call the police already?  
  
She smiled, then walked over to the tray and poured three cups.  She handed two to Naomi, then propped Blair up and put a pillow behind him.  She took one of the cups and handed it to him.  "Chamomile, ginger and lemon," she said.  "It's good for when you've had a shake-up."  Blair sipped, then nodded his thanks.  
  
"So," Naomi said.  "I'm waiting.  What on earth were you doing in that tree?"  
  
"Oh, I think I know," Mrs. Danbush answered.  "It was the boys in school, wasn't it?  They seem to find it funny to dare newcomers to climb the tree and bring back an apple.  To show how brave they are."  She picked up her own cup and took a sip.  "Is that how it went, more or less?"  
  
Blair looked at her with wide eyes, then looked down, embarrassed and ashamed. " Yes, ma'am," he said quietly.    
  
Mrs. Danbush laughed. "Lord, young man, don't you know you should never call a woman 'ma'am?  It makes us feel old.  You can call me Mrs. Danbush, or Aunt Ruth, if you prefer.  It's what my…younger friends call me.  
  
"So, what made you fall?  Did you slip coming down?"  
  
"No, ma'--Aunt Ruth." It felt strange to say that to the woman he had wronged.  He'd have to practice it, he reminded himself.  "I was just getting down and I guess I startled a cat who was in the tree. He howled and I lost my grip."  
  
"What color was the cat?"  
  
"Orange."  
  
"Or that's a she.  Her name is Mary Ann." At Blair's quizzical look, she said, "Mrs. Howell seemed too stuffy and Ginger was too obvious." When Blair still looked confused, she added, "You know, Gilligan's Island? On TV?"  
  
"Oh, we don't watch much television," Blair said with just a touch of regret.  He finished his tea and Ruth picked it up and refilled it, this time bringing a plate of cookies to offer.  Huge oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.  He wanted to take one, but he had to do something first.  "I'm sorry, Aunt Ruth," he said lowly, trying not to cry.  
  
Ruth sighed.  "I know you are, honey, and you paid a high price.  I forgive you, and I'm so sorry you got hurt." She looked out the window at the beautiful tree.  "Perhaps I should just cut it down--"  
  
_"No!"_  
_"No!"_  
  
Mother and son sang out in unison, both with exactly the same tone of horror.    
  
Ruth looked at them both, smiled and then shrugged.  "But it's such a temptation.  Next time, it might be a broken neck."  
  
Naomi looked at Blair, who was looking even more guilty than before.  "Perhaps you can put up a deterrent?  At the commune, we used to smear this tacky stuff all over the trunks of the almond trees.  It lasts all season and kept the squirrels from climbing them." She looked fondly at Blair.  "I think any little boy who got that stuff all over him would have a lot of explaining to do to his mom, and the word would spread."  
  
"Naomi, that's a great idea.  I'll stop by the hardware store to pick some up. I'm afraid Mary Ann won't like it, but she'll find someplace else to perch.  It would save me a lot of worry every fall.  Now," she said, offering the plate again, "Let's have some cookies and enjoy what's left of the day.  And Blair…"  
  
Blair looked up from munching his cookie.  
  
"You be sure to come back on Halloween.  I make caramel-covered apples for my special friends." She winked and offered him another cookie.  
  
~~end~~

**Author's Note:**

> Mrs. Danbush is a "prop" character, but canon none the less. Blair mentions that he broke his arm falling out of Mrs. Danbush's tree in the episode "Cypher".


End file.
